


Song for a Melting Heart

by essily



Category: Critical Role (Web Series)
Genre: Angst, F/M, Family Feels, Fluff, Friendship, Friendship/Love, Jester and Caleb as ice dance partners what more can i say, Multi, Slow Burn, Team as Family, beau drives the zamboni, figure skating AU, ice dance au, its a mess, nott and molly are costume designers, some sadder stuff later, yasha teaches hockey to kids
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-12-19
Updated: 2019-01-04
Packaged: 2019-09-22 16:40:33
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 2
Words: 6,307
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17063288
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/essily/pseuds/essily
Summary: Jester Lavorre's figure skating career ended five years ago when her senior debut season ended in disaster. Caleb Widogast, a promising young ice dancer, dropped off the face of the earth five years ago when he had a mysterious falling out with his coach and his partner. By chance, they end up returning to skating, both under the tutelage of Jester's mother, a renowned coach. When the idea of pairing them together arises, it's a risky bet, but one that could put them both back on the world stage.Jester hopes to make it work with her new partner, but they seem like complete polar opposites. Can they really make a good pair? Or will the stresses of the sport keep them from ever truly connecting? Jester loves her new surroundings and the ragtag family she's been adopted into, but Caleb eludes her- and his past may not stay past forever.Also, Jester definitely doesn't have a crush. Definitely not.





	1. Prologue

**Author's Note:**

> Once again, you can thank the Widojest discord for this. We had a really long conversation about this AU, and I just fell in love with the idea. This will be pretty long. Buckle up, folks! Slow burn means sloooooowwww buuuuurrrnnnn.

Jester was barely holding back tears as she waited for her scores in the Kiss and Cry. Well, there had to be a reason they called it Kiss and _Cry_ , and all this season she had been finding that out.

She knew exactly what people always said about her. She heard whispers all the time. How unlike the other Russians, she only skated to contemporary music, how she was too silly and childish in her skating, how she was inconsistent, had no range, had no talent at all. She had always done her best to ignore it.

But her Senior debut was taking its toll on her. This was her second Grand Prix event, and after finishing fourth in her first event, she had thought she would be okay the second time around. Maybe she’d even medal.

But without her coach near her, she had faltered. The Traveler didn’t like to be on camera, she knew that. He was a very private man. But when she had arrived at the rink nearly alone, and when she had gone on the ice with nobody there to ground her, she had faltered.

She’d fallen on the triple loop, double-footed out of one of her twizzles, and- worst of all- popped the triple axel. The negative GOEs would be enough to land her in last place. She knew it.

And she had nobody to sit in the Kiss and Cry with her. That was the worst of all. She had nobody. Her mama was at home in Russia. All her friends- if she could even call them friends- were too busy with training and their own lives to come support her.

It was okay, though. It had to be okay. She forced a smile. Even though she felt the cameras on her, and the muttering of disappointment in the crowd, she forced a smile, made herself as bright and carefree as possible. It took all the energy she still had after her skate, but she had to smile. If she didn’t smile, she felt like she would break into pieces.

_The scores, please._

Jester held her breath.

_Jester Lavorre has earned in the free program… 77.96 points._

She didn’t listen for more. She already knew that she was in last place. She tuned the rest of it out, her smile crumpling, and put her head down so the cameras couldn’t catch the tears running down her face. She stayed only until she knew the footage had cut away, and then she darted. She hid her face as well as she could and ran, nearly tripping a few times as she clumsily moved on her blades.

She got to the locker room and fell sat down heavily next to her bag. For a long minute she tried to stifle her sobs, wiping the tears hastily from her face in case anyone came in after her. But why would they? Jester Lavorre was supposed to be bright and bouncy and a light in people’s lives. She didn’t expect anyone to care about a Jester who was lonely and angry and disappointed in herself.

Jester suddenly hated the frilly pink dress she was wearing. She threw off her skates and the dress, not caring when it hit the dirty floor. She wasn’t putting it on again. She didn’t even want to wear her practice clothes. She found the spare outfit she kept with her things and put it on. Black leggings and a skirt were much more comfortable. She pulled the hood of her hoodie over her head and sank down against the wall, putting her head down on her knees.

A few minutes later, when she had finished crying, there was a knock on the door. It was hesitant and slow, but a second later it was repeated, a little louder and more assured.

“Miss Lavorre?”

It was an American accent, and sounded as if it belonged to a man maybe a few years older than her. For a moment she considered plastering a smile on her face, opening the door and greeting whoever it was as if nothing had happened. But if she did that, she would have to face the disappointment of that person, and she didn’t think she could do that.

“Miss Lavorre, I… It’s Fjord Vandrin. I don’t mean to intrude, but I hope you’re okay. Well- I- I mean you’re not okay, but that’s okay. No. Shit. Fuck.”

She had started listening closely as soon as she heard his name. She knew Fjord Vandrin. He had made his senior debut a few years ago and was already placing in these events. He probably wouldn’t go to finals, but next year he certainly would. He had talent and work ethic and he skated with incredible power. He had no reason to be running after stupid girls who couldn’t land their jumps or deal with losing.

But here he was, speaking to her softly through the door of the locker room, to polite to even come in.

“What I mean to say is, you win some, you lose some. I just hope you don’t let this stop you. You have real potential. I’d hate to see you go. Uh. That’s all, I guess.”

There was a long moment of quiet, and then she heard his footsteps begin to recede. She would have called after him, thanked him or something, but she didn’t feel like she could move from this spot. Her heart was at war with herself. Vandrin, this incredible skater, had cared enough to come check on her. And yet she knew she had disappointed him, too. If he thought she had potential, she had just proved him wrong.

Her face burned and she put her head down again. After that, nobody came for her. She had nobody here with her to help. Not her coach, not her friends-that-were-hardly-friends, not her mother or even her teammates. She knew that at this moment other girls were on the ice warming up, about to do what she had failed to do. About to win. About to light up everyone’s world.

She couldn’t stand it. Jester shoved everything back into her back and put on her coat. She checked the hall to see if it was nearly empty before she went for the door.

Jester called a taxi the second she got out of the rink. She climbed in the back, and for the first time since she’d got her scored, opened her mouth to speak. It was weak and rough when she finally made a sound.

“Pillow Trove Hotel, please.”

She looked out the window into the darkness and the city lights as it started to snow. She had once liked this. Seeing the world go by. It reminded her that there were billions of people in the world living their own lives with their own joys and sorrows. But now it just reminded her of the millions of people she had let down.

The Pillow Trove was the most expensive hotel in the city, and the Traveler had been the one to book it for her. He did everything for her on these trips since he never came with her- he covered food, housing, even the clothes she wore were of his choosing and at his expense. But now she looked at the towering building with some level of disgust.

Jester didn’t deserve a place like this. She gave the taxi driver much more money than she owed him, entered the hotel and went directly to her room, not letting anyone see her face.

She packed her things and sat heavily on the bed. Turning on the TV on a whim, she found that Skate America was broadcasting live, and the free skate had ended. They were on to the free dance now.

Jester had her finger on the button to turn the TV off, but paused when she heard who was on next. Caleb Widogast and Astrid Rosenhelm, who were also making their senior debut this year. She had heard a lot about them. For their young age, they were remarkably serious and hardworking, and their chemistry was good. They were praised for being very adult, even in juniors. They only ever skated to classical music, and everything they did looked like ballet.

She had seen them once or twice when moving around rinks, back when the Traveler had proven his nickname, taking her to many different cities to be taught by many different teachers. For a few months she had trained in the same rink as those two, but on very different schedules. She’d never spoken to either, but they had always caught her eye. She’d wanted to make them liven up, smile a little.

Even now, as they skated to Swan Lake, she wished she could tell a joke and break the tension. They were so serious. Technically they were perfect in every way, and their scores were off the charts. But they were so melancholy, so sad. Usually, Jester couldn’t stand watching it for how morose it all was. But she felt very strange and broken up inside, and she couldn’t tear her eyes away this time.

The way they moved, now that she really looked at it, was entrancing. Widogast was impossible to look away from, captivating, commanding on the ice. And Astrid Rosenhelm was pure beauty, her hair all in elegant braids, her dress flowing picturesque behind her.

Jester only realized she was crying again when it was too blurry to see them on the screen, and then she turned the TV off and scrubbed at her eyes. What was wrong with her? Why was she suddenly like this? Crying and feeling sorry for herself and watching the most serious ice dancers ever skate their program?

She didn’t know what to do with herself. She could draw, but she knew all she would draw were her own failures. She had nobody to talk to or whose hair she could braid to occupy herself.

Jester went out onto the balcony with her cell phone and dialed the Traveler’s number. It rang for a few seconds, then went to voicemail, as always.

“Hi, Traveler. I don’t know if you’ll listen to this, but I… I failed today. I did it all wrong. And I cried in front of everyone. I really wish… I really wish you were here.” She swallowed her tears and went on. “You’re my best friend in the world, but you aren’t here right now, and I don’t know what to do.”

But then she paused. And then she did know what to do.

“Traveler, I’m sorry. I’m done skating.”

\--

It wasn’t hard to change her flight, or to turn off her phone so nobody could reach her. It was easy to find a taxi in St. Petersburg that would take her all the way to where she wanted to go. It was even easy to pay the driver the huge sum it had amounted to. But Jester found it was too hard for her to ring the doorbell.

She knew her mother would not be angry. She was a good mom, the best she could have asked for. But still, Jester stood in front of the Lavish Chateau and couldn’t move her hand. She had still failed. She had still let her mother down.

But what did she have to lose? She schooled her face into a smile and rang the doorbell. Not ten seconds later, the door was thrown open and her mother was there, looking at her like she’d found treasure.

Jester couldn’t keep smiling. They met in the middle as she let herself fall forward and her mother threw her arms around her, hugging her tighter than she’d ever been hugged before.

“Oh, my dear. Oh, Jester. I’ve been trying so hard to reach you.”

“I’m sorry, mama.”

“Don’t. It’s okay. I was just so worried about you.”

Ten minutes later, when she had finished telling her story, Jester sat at the dining room table holding her hot cocoa between her hands. Marion sat beside her and placed a hand on hers.

Jester felt better already being home, with someone there for her, but that didn’t chance the gravity of what she had decided.

“Are you sure this is what you want, Jester?” Marion’s soft voice was slow, careful. “I won’t stop you, but only if you’re certain.”

Jester nodded. “I wanted to make people happy, Mama. That was all I wanted to do. And when everyone made fun of me for being silly and skating to fun music and smiling all the time, that was okay! Because I knew I was making people happy. But I don’t think I can do that anymore.” She put her head down, wiped her tears away.

Marion pulled her daughter into an embrace. Jester settled in, relieved beyond words.

“Darling, I introduced you to skating because it was what I loved to do. I wanted you to understand that part of my life. But you don’t have to do it if you feel you aren’t up to the task. I’m so proud of you. I’m so proud that you got so far. You make me so, so happy, and you don’t need skating to do that.”

Jester hugged her mother tighter.

“Have you told your coach?”

“I left him a voicemail. I don’t want to see him right now.”

“Okay. Come on. You can have a nice bath and get some rest. You must be so tired from your flight.” Marion gently released Jester and kissed her on both cheeks, then the forehead. Jester couldn’t help but laugh at the gesture, familiar from when she was little. They stood up together and Marion brought her upstairs to her room.

She sat on her bed for a while, unsure what to do or what to think. She was not a skater anymore. That much was clear. Her bags had been brought up. She didn’t even unpack her skating things, just tossed the bag into the corner of her room and flopped down on her back. What was she supposed to do now?

 

FIVE YEARS LATER

Jester was putting the finishing touches on a vanilla hazelnut latte when the bell on the door jingled again, signaling a new customer.

“One minute!” She called, sticking a little shaving of chocolate on top of the foam. The woman who had ordered this drink was going to love the little panda she had made, complete with a tiny bow that adorned the ear. Turning to the counter, she placed down the drink.

“Vex? 

Said woman perked up at the sound of her name and came to receive her drink. The smile that lit up her face upon seeing the panda bear was stunning. “Thank you, dear,” she said in a low, lovely voice, and then took her coffee back to her seat, where a white-haired bespectacled man was waiting for her. Jester smiled and waved at her as she walked away. 

She turned to greet her new customer, and stopped in her tracks. She would have known that green coat anywhere. The Traveler looked just as surprised as she was.

For a second they just stared, and then they smiled at each other. Jester glanced at the clock- it was almost the end of her shift, so it was fine for her to skip out. She took off her apron as fast as she could and leaned over the counter for a hug.

Laughing, the Traveler came in to hug her.

“Oh my gosh, I’m so happy to see you!”

“You too, Jester. It’s been too long. Got time to make one more drink?”

She pulled away with a smile.

\--

“So you’ve been coaching in Toronto? That’s so close to Mama!”

The Traveler sipped his coffee and nodded. “We see each other now and again. She’s been busy with her new students, though lately she’s been less in figure skating and more in ice dance.”

“Oh, yeah! She told me that! Someone named Cali looking for a partner, right?”

“Yes. Calianna is a gem. I think you’d love her, actually. We did get one possible partner, but… I think that match is a long shot.”

It had been a long time since Jester had even thought about skating. Of course, it would always be at the back of her mind, but these days nobody ever recognized her in public, and she hadn’t been on the ice in a while. For a couple years she had gone to the rink in her hometown once or twice just to try it, but it hadn’t stuck.

Now, talking about it with the Traveler, it didn’t bother her as much as it might have a long time ago. She had learned to smile through all the disappoinment of that season.

“So is this what you’ve been doing? Latte art and the like?”

“Well, that and other things. Lots of drawing. I do commissions sometimes! But mostly, yeah. I do this. It… makes people smile.”

“Oh, Jester, you really haven’t changed.” His tone was fond as it had ever been. Jester had worried for a second that he might be angry with her for the way she had quit, but he hadn’t brought it up. 

They talked for over an hour, until the sun was going down.

“Do you have anywhere you need to be, Jester?” The Traveler leaned forward with a familiar glint in his eye that meant mischief.

“Not really.” Jester was almost ashamed to admit it. Even though she had been home for so long, she hadn’t made any real friends. She wished he had plans for a Friday night like everyone her age seemed to, but she spent most nights at home, reading and drawing in her apartment.

“What do you say to coming over to the rink? They know me, they’ll let us in. We don’t even have to try training. Just skate around a bit. What do you say?”

Jester deliberated for a long moment. To be honest, skating without pressure sounded good. It wasn’t like it was an international competition. Just some fun with an old friend.

“Okay. Let’s go.”

\--

Being on the ice again was simpler than Jester thought it would be. Maybe after all these years she hadn’t quite lost her touch. She stumbled only for a moment.

“Your body must have changed quite a bit, but you’ll just get used to it again.”

She nodded. Already she was skating circles around the ice. Without even trying, she found herself smiling wide as she sailed across the rink. She’d forgotten this feeling, this _freedom_. She could go so fast on skates, faster than she could ever run. 

She laughed at herself, imagining herself like a dog with its head out the window. Then she narrowed her eyes and turned. Her blade struck the ice before she even knew what she was doing, and-

She was in the air. It only ended up being a single, but when she landed she felt that familiar rush that came with landing a jump, the satisfaction that flooded her veins.

Somewhere behind her, the Traveler was clapping and whooping. “That was wonderful! Warm up more, though, if you’re going to keep doing that.”

“Get out here with me!”

They skated for hours, until well past ten, before Jester finally had to tap out. She skated out to the stands, panting hard with a smile on her face. The Traveler, whose stamina was impressive for keeping up with her all this time, sat down next to her and they both unlaced their skates in unison.

She felt a sudden pang of sadness. When he’d coached her, this was how they had always sat, taking off their skates after a long session.

“When are you leaving town?” She tried to keep the frown out of her voice, but it probably didn’t work. The Traveler had always had a way of knowing when she was not as happy as she said she was.

“Tomorrow morning. I’ve been here for a week on a break, but I didn’t know you were here. I’m sorry. If I’d known-”

“It’s okay. I just wanted to know if we could… skate more.”

They sat in silence for a moment as they put their shoes back on. But then the Traveler paused, halfway through tying the laces of his nice shoes.

“What if you came with me?”

“Huh?” For a second she thought she hadn’t heard right.

“Jester, what if you came to Canada? What if you started training again? Or, no, you don’t have to train. But you could be near your mother, and myself, and if you ever wanted to start skating again, you’d be close enough to jump back in. Start again from the bottom up.”

“I…” She was about to say she didn’t want that, didn’t want the chance to try again. But after tonight, she did. It was so strange, so sudden, but she did.

“You don’t have to say yes. But I can get you a ticket to Canada, and the right papers to live there. If you do say yes.” He stood up and put his bag over his shoulder, then paused in his tracks. “And there is one more thing. Jester, that year, your senior debut, I remember that your biggest problem was the technical elements. Jumps, mostly. What if you didn’t have to do jumps? What if you did ice dance?”

“But… I don’t have a partner.” In truth, she didn’t know of anyone that would be able to stand having her as a partner. Even her training partners, when she was younger, had called her annoying and hated practicing with her. To be a permanent partner with someone else, that was something she wouldn’t wish upon anyone.

“Not yet. And you don’t have to do this. But I think I have an idea. Something Marion asked me about the other day… it just might work.”

Jester stood and contemplated for a very long time. When was the last time she had changed anything about her life? Taken a risk? A leap of faith?

In the end, there was only really one answer.

“Okay. Let’s do this.”

The Traveler sighed a smile, and then they hugged each other, giggling like little kids. And people asked her where she got the mischievous personality from.

Seventy-two hours later, after all the phone calls and hasty explanations, all the packing, all the nonsense at the airport, after a joyful reunion with her mother and a long night’s sleep, Jester stepped into the rink in Toronto for the first time.

And her smile was real.


	2. A New World

Jester was absolutely beaming.

The place was beautiful from the outside, but as soon as Marion opened the doors for her Jester knew it was amazing on the inside too. The entry room was empty except for them, since it was after hours, and Jester ran inside, twirling herself around to try and take it all in.

“Oh my gosh I wish the snack stand was open  _ so bad _ .” She gawked at just  _ how much food _ there was behind the counter. Even the skate rentals looked inviting, everything clean and shiny and beautiful-

“I could do that if you want. Hi, Marion. This your daughter?” 

The voice came from behind the snack stand’s counter, where apparent a woman had been crouched down taking inventory. She stood up to her full height. She had brown skin and hair that was shaved underneath and on top pulled into a loose bun, and she was wearing all blue, a nice teal color that frankly looked  _ great _ on her.

“Hello, Beauregard. Yes, this is Jester. Jester, Beauregard is an invaluable member of our staff.”

Bea shot her a crooked grin. “Pleasure to meet you.” She stuck out a hand.

Jester ran toward her and shook it. “Hi! You work here? What’s it like? Do you like it? Is my mom really good at coaching?”

“Uh… yes to all?”

“Don’t mind her, Beauregard. She’s just flown in from Russia. She’s just so excited.”

“It’s true! I am!”

“Well, here. I’ll give you one thing from the snack stand. On the house.”

“ _ Really?! _ ”

“Yeah, why not?”

Jester gasped and set to studying every single item they had. “Do you have lollipops?”

“Sure do.”

After a few more minutes of chatting, when Jester was finally too occupied with her lollipop to keep speaking, they bid a goodnight to Beau and Marion took her next to the locker rooms.

“We have a lot of youth hockey teams that play here, so they’ll be crowding up the place a little more often than we’d like. But you’re gonna love one of their coaches, I know it. And we also have this.”

Marion produced a key from the pocket of her coat and showed Jester to another room a little further down the hall. She unlocked the door and Jester walked through into a second locker room, smaller than the first, that seemed to already have some stuff from other skaters occupying part of the space.

“This is where my students keep their things. And if you do decide to come to training, you can use this room too.”   
Jester pushed down a bit of rising anxiety when her mother mentioned her coming back to training, but it was gone soon enough as Marion kept showing her around. She learned where the bathrooms were, where the offices were, and at long last, she stepped into the actual rink.

It was empty except for them, and the ice was freshly resurfaced. Jester itched to throw her skates on and get out there, do a few laps while the ice was so lovely and smooth. But not yet. Not just yet. 

“It’s wonderful, isn’t it?”

Jester nodded. On one wall, the windows were tall and opened almost the whole side of the building to the outdoors. She could only imagine how the light would fall through onto the ice during the early mornings. 

She would find out herself soon enough, if she just decided to come to training.

Jester and her mother stayed at the rink a while longer, but eventually it was a bit too late to be hanging around as Beau finished closing the place up. She came by to turn off the lights just as they were leaving. She stopped Jester as she was walking past.

“Hey,” she said, “are you thinking of coming back for practice and shit?”

“Um. I don’t know yet.”

“Oh. I, uh…” Beau rubbed her arms and for a second looked almost nervous. Definitely very awkward. “I was just wondering if I would get to watch you skate sometime. You’re sort of, uh. Amazing.”

“Really?” It was odd to hear someone say that. Did Beau know how awful her last season had been? There was no way she didn’t- but she still talked like Jester was not a complete failure.

“Yeah. Really. I’m no professional skater, but I used to. Kind of. Uh. Look up to you.”

Jester couldn’t control her widening eyes and growing grin. Her heart was going crazy in her chest. 

“Aw, Beau, that’s the sweetest thing anyone has ever said to me!”

Beau’s face soured at the word  _ sweet _ . “Just come to training. You should come to training. Please.” She cleared her throat and seemed to decide that this interaction was over. She shut off the lights in the rink and locked the door behind them as they left.

Jester follower Marion out to the car with a wave to Beau, who saluted and started walking down the block. “Hey, Mom?”

“Yes, Jester?”

“Is there training tomorrow?”

“I’m taking the day off, actually. A friend of mine is in town. But if you’re that eager to come to the rink, there’s a bit of a youth hockey game tomorrow. You could meet their coach.”

“Oh! The one you said I’d like?”

“That’s the one.”

Jester yawned and got in the car, snuggling up in her big, warm coat as they drove back to Marion’s apartment in the falling snow. She had to admit, it was all very strange and different being in Toronto. Everyone spoke English, even more than she was used to from international competitions in her skating days. It was just as cold as she was used to, too, but it felt different. Maybe it was just nerves.

Either way, she was excited to meet everyone else. 

\--

The rink was abandoned this late, the lights off, but Caleb had keys, and he had turned on just enough lights to light the ice. Beau would grumble at him about resurfacing the ice the next day, but he would bear it. He preferred to be here late, when it was just him, when he could hear himself think.

Caleb closed his eyes and stopped himself just to one side of center ice. He positioned himself, one arm out so it reached toward the empty space where his partner would have been. Then, imagining the first solemn note of the sonata, he let himself glide backward and began the familiar steps of the old program.

Five years later, and he still remembered every second of it. It was not difficult, but there were parts he couldn’t do alone, so his mind stayed firmly on the technical side of his moves as he skated what he could. Every twizzle and every step, he could imagine exactly what it had felt like at the final. The music thrumming through his veins, resonating in his chest, and his focus entirely on her.

He reached the middle of the program and there was nothing left that he could do alone. Not without Astrid. Caleb paused where he was. Closed his eyes. Imagined that Astrid was right there next to him, holding out her hand behind her, waiting, trusting that he would take hold and they would keep going.

Caleb sighed. No use imagining that. He had already been there, and already let her down. He didn’t know exactly what he was doing here, if he was honest. Looking for something, perhaps. For a way to get back what he had lost. But he wasn’t sure if he could do it alone. An ice dancer turning to figure skating? At his age? It was unheard of.

And yet, whoever this partner was that Marion had mentioned, she certainly didn’t deserve to be paired with him. She probably had high hopes and determination and direction in her life. Just like Astrid. Just one more beautiful girl he was bound to disappoint.

And still, Caleb went back to center ice, closed his eyes, glided backwards. Again, again, over and over, he skated, hearing the sonata in his head, imagining every move as it had once been. Before he had lost his spark. When the judges and his fellow skaters and the whole world had adored him. 

Such grace, they’d said. Such maturity. And when he skated with Astrid, it was as if all his attention zeroed in on her, and their chemistry had been palpable. 

And then, just like that, it had all vanished.

And still, again, again, Caleb skated the steps.

Again, again, again.

\--

“How are you adjusting?” The Traveler sat across from her at the little table pushed up against the wall. This wasn’t the kind of place Jester was used to eating in, but he had insisted it was the best breakfast in town and he wasn’t going to let her miss out on it. She had to admit it was rather good.

“I’ve only been here one day, but it’s really weird. Good, though. I like being back with Mom. What have you been up to, though?”

“Oh, nothing. Getting back into the swing of coaching.”

Jester hummed and shoved an oversized bite of her pancakes in her mouth. This, she thought, was one of the best things about being in Canada. Everywhere she went, the food was amazing. She had also discovered Tim Horton’s, and Marion had had to physically restrain her form buying all the donuts she could eat.

The Traveler laughed when she told the story. “Your mother is right, you know. You’re going to have to get back in shape if you want to train.”

Jester looked down at her pancaked, suddenly unsure of herself. “Well, about that… I still don’t know if it’s a good idea. I don’t know my partner, and… and what if he doesn’t like me?”

The Traveler nodded. “If you really feel that way, Jester, why don’t you go to the rink late tonight and skate around a bit? See if that changes your mind.”

“Alright. I’ll try it. But if I do decide to train, I want  _ one _ last box of donuts.”

The Traveler smiled, and Jester beamed proudly. “I’m sure I can arrange for that.”

\--

The game that evening was absolutely delightful. Seeing the tall, muscular woman who Marion pointed out as the coach, Jester half expected her to be the aggressive type who yelled at the kids for doing things wrong. Jester had seen many coaches like that in Russia. But as the game went on, and it looked like the home team might lose, Yasha was as gentle with the kids as if they were her own.

In the end, Yasha’s kids won by only a few points, she shook hands with the other coach a little awkwardly. Marion led Jester over to where she stood minutes later, when the kids had all packed up. She was giving them a quick talk about the game, praising the things they did right rather than correcting what they did wrong. 

They did a quick cheer, and then all of the kids went away except one. It was a little kenku girl, holding out her feathery winglike arms for a hug. Yasha’s face, noticing this, went a little red. She awkwardly gave the girl a little hug, patting her on the head, and then watched her skip away.

“Yasha, dear!” Yasha turned just as Marion and Jester were approaching. “I’d like you to meet my daughter, Jester.”

“Oh. Yes. I have… heard of you.” She stuck out her hand slowly for Jester to shake. Very slowly. Jester was starting to get the feeling that Yasha was better with children than with adults. She shook Yasha’s hand anyway with a glib smile. 

“Hi! That was a really good game, you must be a really really good coach!”   
“Oh. Uh. Thank you.” Yasha was blushing again. “Are you training here?”

“Jester hasn’t decided yet.” Marion placed a comforting hand on Jester’s back. Inwardly, Jester sighed in relief. At least her mother had gotten used to the question being asked, and knew to deflect it off her. It wasn’t easy for her to just say she didn’t know what she wanted.

“Well, I... hope you... like it here.” Yasha nodded, and then walked quite abruptly away toward the front doors. On her way, Beau leaned on the counter and waved at her. Yasha waved back, a small gesture, and shy.

“I do like that girl,” Marion sighed. 

“Me too! She’s, like, really big and strong and nice!”

Beau sighed, deep and mournful as she slumped against snack counter. 

“Ooooh, and Beau likes her too!”

“Shut up.”

Jester cackled. 

\--

 

The rink should have been abandoned this late. Jester had planned on going as Beau was closing up for the night, after having a late dinner with her mom. She was restless. Excited. A new place, a new timezone, new people… it was all buzzing inside her, keeping her perpetually awake. She couldn’t wait until she decided whether to train to get on the ice. Ever since that first skate with the Traveler back home in Russia, she had been itching for more.

She hadn’t known how much she missed it until she had a taste, and then several days without actually skating. She was hungry for it now. She was also hungry in general. She had just had dinner, so she had no right to be hungry. But tragically, she was, and tragically, when she went in the back door of the rink, there was no sign of Beau at the snack stand. The place was dark, except for the rink itself, which appeared to be dimly lit.

Jester wasn’t sure who could possibly be skating at midnight. She had the excuse of jet lag and excitement, but it was barely an excuse. She wondered who in their right mind would come here at this hour. Or maybe Beau hadn’t turned off the lights. Maybe Beau had been kidnapped by a rival snack stand person at another rink! Jester was starting to get really invested in this little mystery when she quietly slipped through the door to the rink, not wanting to disturb anyone who was out there on the ice.

Jester was good at sneaking, so she crept around toward the stands. 

There, gliding on the ice like he was born for it, was a man with reddish hair and a bit of a scruffy beard, in a sweater and casual pants, looking for all the world like some random person who had wandered in- except for the way he held himself. Tall, straight, almost military.

He was skating with ease, the ease that only came with years of training. He was clearly a talented skater. But the pattern he was skating seemed hollow and strange, as if it were missing something, missing--  _ a partner _ .

He slowed down and stopped and Jester could finally see his face. He looked so different, but it couldn’t have been anyone else. Older, taller, but it was him. Without a doubt.

Jester gasped aloud and nearly forgot that she had been hiding.

Caleb Widogast.


End file.
